How to Speed Up USB 3.0 External Hard Drive in Windows 10/8/7

Updated by

Sherly 

Written by

Tracy King 

Last updated on April 19, 2024

If your hard drive is slow, you've come to the right place. This page will guide you through the steps to speed up and boost data transfer or file copy speeds on a USB 3.0 external hard drive in Windows 10, 8, or 7. You might be looking for ways to improve performance and speed up your external hard drive if you're experiencing one of the following issues:

1. 1. File copy interrupted
2. 2. Slow transfer speed with external hard drive
3. 3. Slow file copy to USB 3.0 flash drive or external hard drive
4. 4. Computer freeze when copying or transferring files to USB 3.0
5. 5. Computer freeze when copying files from USB 3.0...

To address the issue of slow external hard drive transfer speeds, we've compiled a list of five top methods. Feel free to try any of them:

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Tip 1: Optimize External Hard Drive Performance for Speed

When storage devices slow down, one quick way to improve their performance is by changing the device's hardware settings. Follow these steps to speed up an external hard drive:

Step 1: Connect the external hard drive to your computer.

Step 2. Open File Explorer, find your external drive, right-click on it, and select “Properties.”

Step 3: On the Hardware tab, click Properties, and then click Change Settings on the General tab.

Step 4: Click the Policies tab, select Better performance, and click OK to confirm all changes.

Then, you can check if your external drive is faster.

Tip 2: Speed things up by formatting your USB 3.0 external drive to NTFS

The file system type can significantly impact the transfer speed of an external hard drive. For faster and more efficient file copying and transferring, it's best to use a storage device formatted with NTFS. Thus, the most effective way to boost the speed of your USB 3.0 external hard drive is to convert it from FAT32 to NTFS.

The free partition magic tool – tools Partition Master Free can help. It can convert an external hard drive to the NTFS file system in three simple steps.

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Download this free software to convert FAT32 to NTFS without losing data:

Step 1: Install and run Partition Master on your computer.

(2) In the "Partition Manager," right-click on a FAT32 partition and select "Advanced" -> "Convert NTFS to FAT."

Step 3: Click “Proceed” in the dialog box that pops up.

Click the "Apply" button to start the process. Wait for it to finish.

This powerful disk management tool has many more features that you'll surely love:

• Migrate OS to SSD or HDD
• Resize partitions to get more space on C drive
• Convert GPT to MBR or MBR to GPT
• Format hard drive or partition

Tip 3: Fix Corrupted System Files to Speed Up External HDD

If the USB 3.0 external hard drive contains corrupted system files, file copying or data transfer speed will naturally slow down. The SFC command prompt can effectively help find and repair corrupted system files on the external hard drive. Here's how to run SFC /SCANNOW.

Step 1. Press Win + X to open the “Power User” menu, and then choose “Command Prompt.”

Step 2: Type sfc /scannow, and then press Enter.

Also read the article SFC finds corrupted files but unable to fix if you have any problems.

Tip 4: Boost External Hard Drive Transfer Speed with Cleanup The transfer speed of an external hard drive can slow down due to disk fragmentation, temporary files, or unnecessary data. Here are some cleanup methods to enhance its transfer speed: 1. **Delete Unwanted Files**: Start by checking the hard drive for large or old files that are no longer needed and move them to another location or delete them permanently. 2. **Defragment the Drive**: Run a disk defragmentation tool, which helps optimize the layout of data on the drive, thus increasing read and write speeds. Note that this process may take some time, especially for larger drives. 3. **Disable Write Caching and Hibernation**: In Windows, you can disable the Write Cache Buffer Flushing and the Quick Removal option in the "Drive Properties," which might slightly improve transfer rates. 4. **Update Drivers**: Ensure your external hard drive's drivers are up to date. Manufacturers often release updates to enhance performance and compatibility. 5. **Use Efficient File Transfer Software**: Try using software specifically designed for high-speed file transfers, like TeraCopy or FastCopy, which may be faster than the built-in file manager of your operating system. 6. **Connection Type**: If possible, connect the drive via a faster interface like USB 3.0 or Thunderbolt instead of USB 2.0, as this will significantly boost transfer speeds. 7. **Temporarily Disable Security Software**: While transferring a large number of files, disable antivirus software or firewalls temporarily, as they might slow down the process. By implementing these cleanup and optimization steps, you should be able to improve your external hard drive's transfer speed and make it more efficient.

You can clear out junk files that slow down USB 3.0 for file transfers. After using your computer for a long time, a lot of unnecessary junk files can take up space on your hard drive. The best way to speed up your USB 3.0 external hard drive for transferring files and data is to simply clean out these files for free.

Step 1: Download and install the Partition Master tool for free, and then run it on your Windows computer.

Hover over the “PC Cleaner” icon, and click the download icon to install and launch the CleanGenius tool.

Step 2: In CleanGenius, tap on “Clean” on the main screen and then tap on “Scan” to start scanning.

Step 3: After the scan, select the unnecessary large files and tap on "Clean" to remove them.

Step 4. Once CleanGenius has finished cleaning the selected files, click on “Finish” to end the process.

### Tip 5: Format Your USB 3.0 External Drive for Better Performance

Another effective method is to format the USB 3.0 external hard drive to NTFS, which can quickly resolve the slow external hard drive issue on a Windows PC. Formatting the partition will lead to data loss. If there's important data on the device, copy and extract it to another drive beforehand.

Format the external hard drive to the NTFS file system:

Step 1: Connect the external hard drive to a computer running Windows 10.

Step 2. Open File Explorer, find the drive, right-click on it, and select “Format.”

Step 3: Choose NTFS as the file system and check "Quick Format," then click "Start" to begin the formatting process.

Extra Tip: How to Backup Files from an External Hard Drive

While these methods can help you fix the slow USB 3.0 external hard drive issue, some of them might also lead to unnecessary data loss errors on the drive. To avoid any unwanted data loss issues, you should back up and extract important data from the USB 3.0 external hard drive to your computer or another secure storage device beforehand.

You could copy and paste existing files from your slow external drive to the new one at a glacial pace, or you could choose a more efficient and faster alternative that backs up everything on your external drive and restores it to the new device at high speed.

If you choose the latter, you can use the Todo Backup Free tool to assist you. It allows you to back up your files from an external hard drive easily and risk-free while taking up minimal storage space on the target device. For a step-by-step guide, refer to this tutorial for assistance:

Conclusions

Try the above solutions when you encounter a slow external hard drive transfer speed issue. These tips should help increase your transfer rate. Partition Master Free plays a crucial role in fixing the slow speed problem. In addition, this free software can assist with disk management, partition cloning, and system migration. Feel free to give it a try and explore more features.

Frequently Asked Questions on How to Improve External Hard Drive (USB 3.0) Transfer Speed

For more information on improving the transfer speed of an external USB 3.0 hard drive, please refer to the following questions and find your answers here:

< strong > 1. Why is my external hard drive so slow? < /strong >

There are several reasons why an external hard drive might become slow during data transfer, as outlined below:

• The external hard drive is full and lacks sufficient space.
• The file system format of the external hard drive is not optimal.
• The formatting of the external hard drive is not highly compatible with your computer's operating system.
• Internal errors or bad sectors on the hard drive.
• Viruses or malware.

2. How can I speed up file transfers from my computer to an external hard drive?

Here are some tips to make your computer run faster when transferring data to an external hard drive:

• Make sure the external hard drive has enough storage space.
• Format the external hard drive to a compatible file system — exFAT for external drives 64 GB or larger.
• Compress large files to reduce their size.
• Run an antivirus program to remove and delete malware or viruses.

3. What is a good transfer speed for an external hard drive?

This is the average transfer speed for an external hard drive:

• For a USB 3.0 external hard drive: 4.8 Gbps
• For a USB 2.0 external hard drive: 480 Mbps
• For a USB 1.1 external hard drive: 12 Mbps